The Digital Agency of Smart Brands.

Let’s get you onboard.

The Digital Agency of Smart Brands.

Let’s get you onboard.

In this 21st century, Managing of your social media presence is imperative but it’s not always easy identifying the skills needed to complete the job of a social media Manager.

Because of this skills gap, it’s imperative for every company, no matter how big or small, to have a strong social media strategy in place and have a quality head devoted to social media.

Once you prioritize hiring the right person for this role, do you know what to look for? I have outlined below, some 5 key skills to look out for in hiring the right person.

ORGANIZATIONAL SKILLS

It’s vital for a to adopt a “to-do list” mindset. Whoever you are taking as your social media manager, ensure their organizational skill is top notch.

More often than not, your Social Media Manager will be the liaison between many internal teams (He/She will work with recruiting, PR, sales and marketing teams on campaigns on a weekly basis), making it vital to stay up to date on all projects you’re working on.

Hence, a strong organizer will handle an editorial calendar with ease. Whether you use a structured calendar system or not, your Social Media Manager must be able to schedule social messages and campaigns everywhere from 24 hours out to a week or two.

PLANNING

This sounds like an oxymoron, but hear me out. From brainstorming sessions and advertising workshops at past jobs, my biggest takeaways have been that social media is all about listening and taking advantage of the moment.

Because of this, we now have a two-fold social media strategy, comprised of the things we can plan and the unplanned. Each week, the social media manager should be able to sit down and schedule Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn posts related to upcoming events, new campaigns, giveaways and other content projects formally planned and organized.

Some social media platforms are the best places for content. For these situations, when social blows up after a big news event, your Social Media Manager should be able to roll with the tidal wave, shift priorities and leverage the surge with relevant, timely and appropriate messaging.

3. PRIORITIZATION

This goes hand in hand with the organization, but I think it fully deserves its own section. The ability to know what’s important and what can wait will make or break any employee, but especially your Social Media Manager.

Colleagues might come at him/her with a dozen requests each day, Tweets for this, a blog post for that, etc. The ability to think both short-term and long-term will keep your Social Media Manager from getting too bogged down with the day-to-day requests. In other words, the prioritizing ability is very important to note.

RESEARCHING

Social media is always changing, often on a dime. So, your Social Media Manager needs to be extremely flexible as well as have a thirst for researching new platforms and innovative technologies.

Ask your candidates which social media platforms they prefer, blogs they read or new technologies they find interesting. Getting a read on how in-the-know your candidates are will help you find the one Social Media Manager that’s right for you.

5. Metrics-Driven

I know many still believe social media is all about awareness simply “too hard to measure,” but I strongly disagree. While not all social media channels will drive leads and revenue, you can always measure engagement.

In the process of hiring, ensure your Social Media Manager have sound technical knowledge of metrics to track. I believe people who have goals and know what they’re working toward perform better in their jobs. So, try looking for someone with this mindset and love of metrics.

In a nutshell, Focus on hiring the specific qualities and skills noted above in organization, planning, prioritization, researching, and metrics-driven rather than focusing solely on experience levels and you’ll find a Social Media Manager who will add real value to your organization.

Alternatively, you can outsource your brand’s social media management for more efficiency and productivity, At image boosters, a full-service creative company. We offer a lot of amazing packages for small and medium business. Such as social media management, digital marketing, brand communication public relations management etc.

Before you begin the hiring process, there is also a need for you to educate yourself properly on what social media really is, how it works with some pros and cons for different platform. Define your goals and objectives as well.

And finally, when you meet with your preferred manager or ready to outsource, show up prepared with a game plan or attend with open ears and an open mind. Either way, your manager or your management company will thank you and you’ll be starting a solid foundation for not only successful social media management and marketing, but a successful business.